Music-leaf turner.



PATENTED MAY 26, 1908.

0. HUGHES. I I I MUSIC LEAP TURNER.

APPLICATION IIL ED AUG.-22, 1906.

A TTOR/VE VS,

GLAUD HUGHES, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

MUSIC-LEAF TURNER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 26, 1908.

Application filed August 22, 1906. Serial No. 331,676.

To all whom it may concern:

is located at the lower edge of some kinds of Be it known that I, CLAUD HUGHES, a music racks, said base also being provided citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, in the county of St. Louis City and State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Music-Leaf Turner, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to music leaf turners, and has for its object to improve the construction and increase the efficiency and utility of devices of this character.

With these and other objects in view, which will appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction as hereafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification and in which corre sponding parts are denoted by like designating characters, is illustrated the preferred form of the .embodiment of the invention capable of carrying the same into practical operation.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a front elevation of the music leaf turner, the standard thereof being shown in section to bring into view the torsional members; Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the device with the inner end of the trip lever 30 and the receiver 28 broken away, the base 10 being shown in section; Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view of the tripping mechanism taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow; Fig. 4 is an enlarged transverse sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1 Fig. 5 is an enlarged transverse sectional view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2 Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail view in elevation of the pivot structure of the swinging sheet-carrying arms as viewed from one side; Fig. 7 is a front view of the same; and Fig. 8 is a plan view of the parts illustrated in Fig. 7.

The improved device comprises a base 10 having a tubular standard 11 rising therefrom and suitably supported from the base as by braces 12, the braces being provided on their rear sides with clips for holding the cover pages of the music, one of the clips being shown at 37.

The base 10 is designed to rest upon the music rack portion of a piano, organ or similar instrument, or upon a movable music rack of any of the usual constructions, and to secure the device in position the base 10 is provided with hooks 13 which are adapted to slip over the horizontally disposed ledge that with downwardly extending projections 14-. arranged in vertical alinement with the vertical portions of the hooks 13 and cooperating therewith to form approximately inverted U-shaped clips which are adapted to receive an upstanding flange or portion such as other styles ofmusic racks are provided with. The standard 11 is provided at its upper end with a hook 15 which engages the upper portion of the rack, and I prefer to cover these hooks and projections 14 with rubber, felt or some other soft material to prevent the rack from being marred.

Rigidly attached to the standard 11 at 16 is a rod 17, and swinging from the standard by a spring hinge 18 is another rod 19, the swinging rod having an operating arm or handle 20. The rods 17 and 19 have been omitted from Fig. 1 to more clearly show the construction of the standard 11 and the parts" that are arranged therein.

The two rods 17-19 form a yielding clip, to support the back edges of the music sheets, as Wlll be obvious.

Disposed side by side within the tubular standard 11 are a plurality of blades or straps 21 of resilient metal, preferably steel, flat or ribbon shaped transversely, and firmly coupled to the upper end of the standard by a plug 22 which is forced into the standard between the plates and the body of the standard.

At their lower ends the plates 21 are respectively connected to arms 23 which projcct below the standard and are turned laterally and terminate in upturned clips each formed with two resilient fingers 2425 be tween which the various sheets of music are detachably connected.

Each of the arms 23 is provided with a projection 26 at its elbow, the several projections overlapping at their terminals and connected by a single rivet 27, and each arm adapted to swing upon the single rivet as a center.

By twisting the series of plates or strips 21 and inserting the plug 22 after the twisting is completed, any required tension may be imparted to the arms 23 to hold them yieldquired, but for the purpose of illustration six are shown, which will be the usual number required, but a greater or lesser number may be employed if desired.

Attached to the base 10 at the right ofthestandard 11 is a receiver 28 for the arms 23 when they are arranged to hold the sheets of music in open position, and in which they will be disposed side by side.

Attached to the base 10 is an outwardlyextending bracket 29 on which the trip lever 30 is pivoted at 31, the inner end 32 of said lever being widened vertically and slotted horizontally to provide a space for the arms 23 when in operative position. A stop lug 35 extends downwardly from the part 33 of the lever 30 above the slot while a second stop lug 34 projects upwardly from the main body 0 the lever below the slot and slightly in rear of the stop lug 35, the distance separating them being equal to the diameter of one of the arms 23.

The inner end of the lever 30 is yieldably supported by a spring 36 with the stop lug 35 across the receiver 28 when the lever is in its normal or withdrawn position, while the stop lug 34 is designed to be projected across the receiver when the outer end of the lever is depressed.

With a device thus constructed the operation is as follows: The music to be turned is dis osed by its back edges in the clip 17 19, as l iefore described, and the individual leaves connected in regular order in the clips 2425 and all the rods 23, with the music sheets at tached, disposed in the receiver 28, in which they will be yieldably held by the stop lug 35 of the lever 30.

When the music on the first sheet has been played, the performer depresses the outer end of the lever 30 and elevates the stop lug 35, and releases the outer or first arm 23 and ermits its torsion spring 21 to throw it over nto its first position carrying the sheet of music to which it is attached with it. In the meantime the stop lug 34 has been elevated in advance of the second arm 23 and holds all the arms and their attached sheets of music, except the released one, within the receiver. 3

As the lever is retulned to its normal position by the action of the spring 36, the stop lug 34 will be depressed and the-stop lug 35 depressed in advance of the outer arm 23 Within the receiver, which are projected outwardly by the combined action of the torsion springs 31, but are held within the receiver by the stop lug 35. Then, when the music of the next sheet has been played, the performer again depresses the lever and releases the next arm and its sheet, and so on for as many times as there are sheets. The flat or ribbon-like members 21 thus exert a torsional spring force upon the arms 23 and 'Wlllld around each other within the tubular standard 11, while at the same time the mem bers are free to be operated one at a time without disturbing the remaining members.

The device is simple in construction, can be inexpensively manufactured and applied, and operates effectually for the purposes de scribed.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is i 1. A music leaf turner comprising a plurality of parallel torsional members held at one end from turning, a lateral arm connected to each torsional member and terminating in a music leaf engaging finger, and a lug extending from each arm to a common center and hinged together.

2. A music leaf turner comprising a plurality of parallel torsional members held at one end from turning, a lateral arm connected to each torsional member, said lateral arms being in a substantially horizontal plane, each arm having a lug extending to a common center and joined by a pivot pin, means for engaging said arms when said torsional members are placed under tension, and means for disengaging said arms in successive order.

3. A music leaf turner comprising a plurality of parallel torsional members held at one end from turning, a lateral arm connected to each torsional member, said lateral arms being in a substantially horizontal plane, each having a lug extending to a common center and joined by a pivot pin, a trip lever having a slotted inner end for retaining said arms, and an escapement device for releasing them one at a time.

4. A music leaf turner com )rising a plurality of torsional members he d at one end from turning, a lateral arm connected to the opposite end of each torsional member, said lateral arms being in a substantially horizontal plane, a rigid trip-lever having a vertically movable slotted inner end for the reception of said arms, and rigid stop lugs on said lever for retaining said arms and releasing them one at a time.

5. A music-leaf turner comprisin a plurality of parallel torsional members he d at one end from turning, a lateral arm connected to each torsional member, said lateral arms be ing in a substantially horizontal plane, a rigid stop lever having a vertically movable inner end provided with a horizontal slot to receive said arms, and stop lugs guarding the entrance opening of said slot and being adapted to release said. arms one at a time as the lever is operated.

6. A music leaf turner comprising a plu rality of parallel torsional members held at one end from turning, a lateral arm connected to the opposite end of each torsional member, said lateral arms lying in a substantially horizontal plane, a non-resilient trip lever having a slotted inner end for the reception of said arms, a rigid stop lu extending downwardly, and a similar stop ug projecting upwardly each partly across said slot, one stop being slightly in advance of the other.

7. A music-leaf turner comprising a plu- E rality of arms each of which is provided with means for engaging a sheet of music, torsional spring extensions on said arms nested together and adapted to be adjusted to vary the torsion thereof, and means for retaining said spring extensions in adjusted position; substantially as described.

8. A music-leaf turner comprising a plurality of arms each of which is provided with means for engaging a sheet of music, torsional spring extensions on said arms nested together, and adapted to be adjusted to vary the torsion thereof, and means for releasing said arms one at a time; substantially as described.

9. A music-leaf turner comprising a lurality of leaf-engaging arms each of whic is provided with a torsional member, a part in which said torsional members are nested together, and removable means for clamping said torsional members together; substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto afiixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

CLAUD HUGHES.

Witnesses:

PHILIP F. SHERIDAN, STERLING P. BOND. 

